


Gingerbread Walls and a Sugar Frosted Rooftop

by Fira



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: Christmas fic, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Gingerbread Houses, Rin/Maki if you squint, Snow, Stargazing, prompt for LL Secret Santa 2016
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-02
Updated: 2017-02-02
Packaged: 2018-09-21 13:41:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9551489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fira/pseuds/Fira
Summary: Their noses are only an inch away from each other, so Rin closes the gap and presses their foreheads together.“R-Rin—!” Maki protests weakly, clutching at her friend’s sleeve as if to keep her from slipping down or to pull her closer. Or both.Comfortable and sated, Rin stuffs her hands inside Maki’s coat and gives her a bright smile. “You’re like a freshly-baked gingerbread house, nya~”





	

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a Christmas gift for twitter user _levianee_ via the LL Secret Santa project! I'm sorry it's been a month overdue but I hope you'll like what I put together-- I did spend all night doing this, hehe~
> 
> I also hope it's not too late to say I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, and may the new year be full of blessings for you and your loved ones! Enjoy!

Rin has always loved starry nights, but she finds it even more breathtaking during winter. The dark backdrop glittering with never-ending stars make a startling contrast to the white snow blanketing the city. It’s almost like she’s on soft white clouds and living among the stars, the universe vast and surrounding her like a warm hug. It’s quiet too, almost eerie, but it’s also relaxing, as if each and every one of the stars nestling above are sending out encouragements with every twinkle, as soft and gentle as the snowflakes raining down.

_Do your best, always!_

_I believe in you!_

_With every step you’re getting closer to your dreams, so don’t give up!_

Feeling her heart swell, Rin smiles as she gazes out the window of her room. She wishes she could go outside and breathe in the fresh chilly air— after all, how can one appreciate winter with a roof above their head?— and bury her feet in the thick snow, and taste the snowflakes falling from the sky like free candy. But her mother, although accustomed to her wild behaviour, had specifically grounded her for fear of her daughter getting sick. And while Rin would usually wave it off as a mild problem, seeing as she very well knows how to keep her body active and healthy, she understands that she mustn’t let anything ruin this night— this special night.

She sees it before she hears it. At the familiar sight, she squeals in excitement and rushes out of her room. She skips down the stairs, not even a little worried if she might slip and tumble down the steps, and dashes straight pass her kitchen and living room. She thinks she might give the impression that there’s a storm inside the house but she doesn’t really care. Upon reaching the door, she plants both of her feet to the floor and opens it in a flourish.

A wide grin plastered on her face, she cheerfully exclaims, “Maki-chan!”

“E-Eh…?!”

Maki has a hand raised as if poised to knock, and Rin knows she should probably feel bad for being a little too enthusiastic— seeing as she opened the door before Maki even had a chance to announce her presence— but her friend has the _funniest_ look on her face. The redhead’s purple eyes are wider than Rin has ever seen, and her mouth is open in shock, a corner of her lips twitching as if she isn’t sure whether she should smile or yell. Her cheeks are a rosy pink, speckles of snow dusting her pale skin.

And despite looking like she’s just seen a ghost, Rin thinks it’s the most adorable thing ever. So she does the first thing that comes into her mind at such a sight— she pounces right into her.

“Maki-chan! Maki-chan! Maki-chan!” She sings as she wraps her arms tightly around her friend, spinning them around in the process.

“ _G-Gyaah!_ Rin, you’re squishing me—!”

“Aww, but you’re so warm, nya~! I think I might stay like this forever, nya~”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Rin! You really shouldn’t— _wa-aah!_ ”

Unable to carry both of their combined weight, Maki loses her footing and crashes into the pile of snow, Rin following right after. Blinking up at the starry sky she was admiring a minute ago, Rin feels absolutely at ease. The snow underneath her is like a fluffy quilt and she has this urge to roll around with it, only instead of trying to keep herself warm, she _wants_ to feel the cold. To experience everything about winter while it lasts.

Beside her, Maki was a little unfortunate. She lifts her face indignantly from where it was buried in the snow and shakes her head, sending flecks of ice flying in the air, some landing on Rin’s face. She doesn’t wipe it away, though.

“Look what you’ve done!” Maki huffs. “Now we’re both freezing and covered in snow, and it’s gonna take a while for these clothes to dry up, and I only have one spare—”

“Oh stop fussing, Maki-chan! It’s not a good look on you, nya~” Rin pouts.

Of course Maki takes offense, even though Rin was only teasing. Her cheeks flare up and her eyes glow like shining crystals. “E-Excuse me for wanting to be careful! You do know how easy it is to catch a cold or even hyperthermia if we play with too much snow. And it’s not wise to get sick if it means slacking off from our school idol activi— hey!”

“ _Nya_ ~!”

Rin stops her by pouncing on her again, pushing her back into the welcoming snow.

“Rin, get _off_ —!” Maki tries to pry her friend’s arms away from her body, but Rin is like a starfish, using all her limbs to attach herself to the struggling redhead.

At some point Rin manages to get Maki flat on her back, pillowed by the snow beneath her, of course. They share eye contact— Maki looking annoyed as ever, and Rin with a triumphant grin on her face. When Maki opens her mouth, no doubt to scold her again, Rin swiftly and expertly unravels her friend’s soft, beautiful scarf from around her neck, taking her by surprise. Then she drops down, burrows her face in the crook of Maki’s neck and rewraps the scarf so it engulfs the both of them. She feels so much warmth, but she knows it’s not exactly from the material around them, rather from within her heart.

Maki stops struggling, but Rin can feel her entire body tense up. She doesn’t even need to look up to know that the redhead is furiously blushing.

“Wh… What are you— Rin…!”

“You really are warm, Maki-chan,” Rin murmurs, snuggling closer. “Even out here where it’s supposed to be chilly, even while we’re lying on lots and lots and lots of snow, nya~” she giggles. “You’re still the warmest, nya~”

This time she does look up, and she meets wide violet eyes glimmering under the twinkling of the stars. Not for the first time, though it still surprises her every once in a while, Maki seems at a loss for words. Her mouth is slightly open again, and her cheeks are still a noticeable shade of red, but at least she doesn’t look like she’s about to yell at her anymore.

Their noses are only an inch away from each other, so Rin closes the gap and presses their foreheads together.

“R-Rin—!” Maki protests weakly, clutching at her friend’s sleeve as if to keep her from slipping down or to pull her closer. Or both.

Comfortable and sated, Rin stuffs her hands inside Maki’s coat and gives her a bright smile. “You’re like a freshly-baked gingerbread house, nya~”

It’s supposed to be a compliment, but Maki somehow makes it sound like an insult. Rin doesn’t blame her. “Eh?! Where did that come from? And why am I a house and not a person?”

“Because you’re warm and sweet, inside and out, nya~” Rin tells her. “Have you ever made gingerbread houses before? Me and Kayo-chin used to try to make them when we were little, nya~ It never turns out perfect, and we always eat the pieces before we finish because we couldn’t resist, nya~! But no matter how imperfect it is, we still love how it looks— it’s our little creation, and it’s precious the way it is. I cherish them all, even the ones I ate, nya~”

“Are you… calling me imperfect?!”

“Actually, you’re the most perfect gingerbread house I’ve never built, nya~”

Maki’s cheeks puff and her eyes water and Rin thinks she’s about to cry, but the laughter that explodes out of her friend’s mouth surprises her. She has her head thrown back as her entire frame resonates with her laughter, and Rin just knows that this is the purest thing she has ever heard, nor will ever get tired of hearing. Above her, the stars seem to laugh alongside the redhead, and the snowflakes are like confetti in a party. It’s beautiful.

Rin just really loves starry nights, especially in winter. Especially with her friends.

Wait.

There’s supposed to be three of them here, spending the night together a week before Christmas. She’s pretty sure she’s missing another one—

“Ah, I’m so sorry for being late, Rin-chan! I got here as fast as I could—”

Both Rin and Maki freeze as Hanayo enters the porch out of breath, as if she’d been running all the way from her house. She looks rather dishevelled, her hair a little all over the place and her glasses almost falling off her nose, but otherwise she’s alright. And dry, of course. She’s staring wide-eyed at them just as they’re staring back at her the same, and Rin has to admit it’s a little intimidating coming from her childhood friend than from Maki.

As if frozen to her spot as well, Hanayo attempts a nervous smile and a small wave. “Um… are we camping outside tonight? I wasn’t aware…”

That must have flipped a switch because Maki is already trying to sit up, dislodging Rin from herself. Rin whines and goes for another hug-cuddle, but Maki stands up so abruptly that Rin falls down face-first into the snow with a yelp.

“W-we are _not_ camping outside, not in this condition,” Maki retorts, elegantly dusting off snow from her hair and coat. She’s avoiding meeting anyone’s gaze but her two friends can clearly see the blush on her cheeks. “I was just telling Rin how staying too long in the snow can give her a cold and get her sick, to the point where it’ll affect our school idol activities. I’m not dumb enough to let that happen.”

“Well… I mean… you did look like you were comfortable lying there for quite a while…” Hanayo’s voice trails away, but Maki hears it anyway. Her blush turns ten times brighter.

“Th-That’s not… We weren’t—!”

“ _Nya_ ~!”

Both Hanayo and Maki screech in surprise as Rin pounces on the redhead once more, this time locking her arms around her friend from behind. She doesn’t spin them around again, and Maki is more than prepared because she reflexively widens her stance to take on both of their weight. She isn’t very pleased about a second attack though, and she whips her head around to glare at the koala perched on her back.

“Rin! Will you stop that?! I’m cold and wet and I don’t want—”

“Let’s make a gingerbread house, nya~!”

“…Eh?”

Rin looks up to meet Hanayo and Maki’s confused gazes and gives them her biggest smile. “Let’s make a big one! A dream house made of cookies and candy and cream, nya~! We can make the roof sugary sweet, and living under it are three gingerbread us, nya~!”

“Oh, so in a way, we’re building a gingerbread house for us to live in, huh?” Hanayo asks, a gentle smile on her face.

“That’s right, nya~!” Rin nods enthusiastically. “And because it’ll be for us, I’m gonna do my best to make it perfect this time. I won’t break off a piece so I can munch on it, and I won’t play around with the decorative cream, nya~ I want it to be the warmest, cutest, sweetest little gingerbread house I’ve ever made, nya~! Just for the three of us!”

Hanayo and Maki share a brief look before they break into fond smiles. They turn back to Rin and nod.

“Sounds like a plan,” Maki agrees.

“I’m going to try my hardest as well, so please bear with me,” Hanayo chips in.

“This is going to be fun, nya~! Come on, Kayo-chin, Maki-chan! Let’s do it now!”

Rin bounds inside her own house, aware that her two friends are following close behind, sharing her excitement. She can’t wait to see how the gingerbread house turns out to be, sculpted by three people who share such a special and wonderful bond together. Their very own gingerbread house, warm and sweet from the inside out...

She never did tell Maki why she called her a house instead of a person. It’s not an insult or anything— Rin just feels like she belongs right there with her, snuggled up close together under the stars, surrounded by snow. She feels safe and loved and at home when Maki lets her in, in those rare precious moments when she does. Maki herself probably doesn’t even realize any of this, but maybe someday Rin will tell her.

For now, Rin has a gingerbread house to make with her two best friends.


End file.
